Passage 1 Since in all her decisions, whether by chance or by choice, Rome took all steps necessary to make herself great, she did not overlook fraud. She could not at the start have been more deceitful than she was in the means she took, as we were saying just now, to acquire allies, since under this title she made them all her servants, as was the case with the Latins and other peoples round about. For she first availed herself of their arms in order to subjugate neighbouring peoples and to build up her reputation as a state, and then, having subdued them, she increased to such an extent that she could beat anyone. Nor would the Latins ever have realised that in reality they were mere slaves, if they had not seen the Samnites twice defeated and forced to accept Rome's terms. -THE DISCOURSES, NICCOLO MACHIAVELLI, 1520 1. Who is “she/here’ in the passage? 2. a. A woman whose Machiavelli love. b. Rome. c. Samnites. d. A mother. What does the statement “she did not overlook fraud...” mean? a. She ended all the hate. b. There is always some injustice occurring someplace. c. She even gets rid of the injustice. d. She dislikes crimes. 3. The paragraph is mainly about what? a. The importance of being a strong independent woman b. The life of a woman c. The secrets of Rome d. How did Rome become a great country 4. What is the mood of the story? a. Happiness b. Sorrow c. Fury d. Grief Passage 2 Passive aggression is so common in daily life that you have to know how to play defense and offense. By all means, use the strategy yourself; it is too effective to drop from your armory. But you must also know how to deal with those semiconscious passive-aggressive types so prevalent in the modern world, recognizing what they are up to before they get under your skin and being able to defend yourself against this strange form of attack. First, you must understand why passive aggression has become so omnipresent. In the world today, the expression of overt criticism or negative feelings toward others has become increasingly discouraged. People tend to take criticism far too personally. Furthermore, conflict is something to be avoided at all costs. There is great societal pressure to please and be liked by as many people as possible. Yet it is human nature to have aggressive impulses, negative feelings, and critical thoughts about people. Unable to express these feelings openly, without fear of being disliked, more and more people resort to a kind of constant, just-below-the-surface passive aggression. -Robert Greene, The 33 Strategies of War 5. 6. 7. Why should we all learn how to cope with passive aggression? a. Because reacting to it only warns one’s heart. b. Because reacting to passive aggression sometimes leads to further trouble. c. Because reacting to passive aggression makes one fulfilled. d. Because passive aggressors are always correct. According to the author, what is the best defense against passive aggresion? a. understand why passive aggression has become so omnipresent b. one’s ability to act with deaf ears c. one’s day to day conduct d. Become a passive aggressor What will happen if the person expresses their feelings openly, without fear of being disliked a. They don’t become passive aggressors b. They become passive aggressors 8. c. They become happy d. They live a carefree live What is the best title for the above selection? a. Passive aggression, its Uses and Abuses b. How to Cope with Passive aggression c. The Ups and Downs of Passive aggression d. People with Passive aggression Passage 3 Yoriyasu was a swaggering and aggressive samurai.... In the spring of 1341 he was transferred from Kofu to Kamakura, where he visited Master Toden, the 45th teacher at Kenchoji, to ask about Zen. The teacher said, "It is to manifest directly the Great Action in the hundred concerns of life. When it is loyalty as a samurai, it is the loyalty of Zen. 'Loyalty' is written with the Chinese character made up of 'centre' and 'heart,' so it means the lord in the centre of the man. There must be no wrong passions. But when this old priest looks at the Samurai today, there are some whose heart centre leans towards name and money, and others where it is towards wine and lust, and with others it is inclined towards power and bravado. They are all on those slopes,and cannot have a centred heart; how could they have loyalty to the state? If you, Sir, wish to practise Zen, first of all practise loyalty and do not slip into wrong desires." The warrior said, "Our loyalty is direct Great Action on the battlefield. What need have we for sermons from a priest?" The teacher replied, "You, Sir, are a hero in strife, I am a gentleman of peace--we can have nothing to say to each other." The warrior then drew his sword and said, "Loyalty is in the hero's sword, and if you do not know this, you should not talk of loyalty." The teacher replied, "This old priest has the treasure sword of the Diamond King, and if you do not know it, you should not talk of the source of loyalty." The Samurai said, "Loyalty of your Diamond Sword--what is the use of that sort of thing in actual fighting?" The teacher jumped forward and gave one Katzu! shout, giving the Samurai such a shock that he lost consciousness. After some time the teacher shouted again and the Samurai at once recovered. The teacher said, "The loyalty in the hero's sword, where is it? Speak!" The Samurai was over-awed; he apologized and took his departure. SAMURAI ZEN: THE WARRIOR KOANS, TREVOR LEGGETT, 1985 9. What does not the priest think about the Samurai today? a. whose heart center leans towards name and money. b. it is towards wine and lust c. it is inclined towards power and bravado d. 10. 11. 12. It is to manifest the Great Action directly in the hundred concerns of life. What was the priest’s ultimate goal? a. To let the Samurai know the meaning of practice Zen b. To bring order out of the prowess of the Samurai. c. The pursuit of happiness d. To bring peace into the world. Yoriyasu had a different view about Samurai. What was it? a. Samurai is a status symbol. b. Samurai brings man closer to God. c. Samurai principles is merely a superstition. d. Samurai is man’s way to become superior Which of the following is not a belief of the Samurai Zen? a. There should be loyalty to the practices. b. Man should exercise restraint and self-control. c. Man should live unknown. d. Do not limit desires to those which are strictly necessary. THE FAIT ACCOMPLI STRATEGY If you seem too ambitious, you stir up resentment in other people; overt power grabs and sharp rises to the top are dangerous, creating envy, distrust, and suspicion. Often the best solution is to take small bites, swallow little territories,playing upon people's relatively short attention spans. Stay under the radar andthey won't see your moves. And if they do, it may already be too late; the territory is yours, a fait accompli. You can always claim you acted out of self- defense. Before people realize it, you have accumulated an empire. -Robert Greene, The 33 Strategies of War 13. 14. 15. 16. What constitutes The Fait Accompli Strategy? a. attainment of one’s ambition’s in small steps b. being at peace with everyone c. self-sufficiency and tranquility d. none of the above How can one attain a successful life, according to the passage? a. by being ambitious b. by getting what one wants no matter the cost c. both a and b d. none of the above What is the cause of resentment, envy, distrust, and suspicion of a man towards others? a. If the man is rising above power too quickly. b. If the man desires nothing. c. If the man desires with limitation. d. If the man discerns truth, focuses upon reason, has a will that is without malice. Which of the following statements is NOT true based on the selection? a. Ambitious does make others resentful. b. Success is attainable through step by step c. A man should be happy with others’ success. d. Man should have patience towards success. The third shogun, Lemitsu, was fond of sword matches. Once, when he arranged to see some of his outstanding swordsmen display their skills, he spotted among the gathering a master equestrian by the name of Suwa Bunkuro, and impulsively asked him to take part. Bunkuro responded by saying that he would be pleased to if he could fight on horseback, adding that he could defeat anyone on horseback. Iemitsu was delighted to urge the swordsmen to fight Bunkuro in the style he preferred. As it turned out, Bunkuro was right in his boasting. Brandishing a sword on a prancing horse wasn't something many swordsmen were used to, and Bunkuro easily defeated everyone who dared face him on horseback. Somewhat exasperated, Iemitsu told Munenori to give it a try. Though a bystander on this occasion, Munenori at once complied and mounted a horse. As his horse trotted up to Bunkuro's, Munenori suddenly stopped his horse and slapped the nose of Bunkuro's horse with his wooden sword. Bunkuro's horse reared, and while the famed equestrian was trying to restore his balance, Munenori struck him off his horse. THE SWORD AND THE MIND, TRANSLATED BY HIROAKI SATO, 1985 17. The paragraph is mainly about what? a. The importance of thinking before acting b. The life of Bunkuro c. The secrets of the swordsmanship d. How to defeat Bunkuro 18. What is the mood of the story? 19. a. Happiness b. Sorrow c. Confusion d. Glory According to the author, what should we do if we face an enemy? a. To know your enemy b. To act strong c. To beat it physically d. To run away Many people think of marketing as only selling and advertising. We are bombarded every day with TV commercials, catalogs, spiels from salespeople, and online pitches. However, selling and advertising are only the tip of the marketing iceberg. Today, marketing must be understood not in the old sense of making a sale—“telling and selling”—but in the new sense of satisfying customer needs. If the marketer engages consumers effectively, understands their needs, develops products that provide superior customer value, and prices, distributes, and promotes them well, these products will sell easily. In fact, according to management guru Peter Drucker, “The aim of marketing is to make selling unnecessary.”3 Selling and advertising are only part of a larger marketing mix—a set of marketing tools that work together to engage customers, satisfy customer needs, and build customer relationships. Broadly defined, marketing is a social and managerial process by which individuals and organizations obtain what they need and want through creating and exchanging value with others. In a narrower business context, marketing involves building profitable, value laden exchange relationships with customers. Hence, we define marketing as the process by which companies engage customers, build strong customer relationships, and create customer value in order to capture value from customers in return -Philip Kotler, Principles of Marketing 20. Which of the following conclusions best summarizes the selection above? a. Marketing will continue to grow in the following years. b. Marketing is satisfying customer needs. c. The effects of marketing are getting extremely confusing. d. Marketing and its effects are occurring and are likely to increase over time. 21. What is the best title for the above article? a. Marketing b. The Demand of Marketing c. Marketing and its’ benefit d. The Rise of the Consumer Needs 22. Why is Marketing very important to all of us? a. Because it it showcase the product and it’s information to the public. b. Because nobody gives the seller income c. Because it satisfy your need d. Because marketing helps the economy It was a few nights after [Zuckerberg] launched the website. He and his computer science buddy were getting pizza and talking. Zuckerberg told his friend that someone was going to build a social network, because it was too important not to exist. But he didn’t guess, back then, that he’d be the guy to do it. There were older people and bigger companies. So why, then, was Zuckerberg the one to build Facebook? “I think it’s because we cared. A lot of times, caring about something and believing in it trumps,” he says. “I couldn’t connect the dots going forward on Facebook from the beginning. To me, that’s a lot of the story of [Facebook’s future] too.” -Mark Zuckerberg 23. The paragraph is mainly about what? a. The importance of friends b. The life of a successful social media platform c. The secrets of making a social media platform successful d. The Life of Mark Zuckerberg 24. What is the mood of the story? a. Happiness b. Sorrow c. Confusion d. Grief 25. What does the article try to convey? a. Caring for your business is important b. Caring for an idea is important c. Caring for your friends is important d. Caring for yourself is important
